Bulk merchandise vending machine with removable cash box and single lock

Claim 1

A bulk merchandise vending machine comprising a housing having a base and two upstanding side walls on said base and an upstanding rear wall on said base, the front of said housing being open and defining an access opening to the interior thereof, a cover arranged for pivotal movement with respect to said base between opened and closed positions with respect to said access opening, a merchandise chute on said cover and extending upwardly and rearwardly therefrom, a merchandise storage member having an access opening to the interior thereof and having bottom wall structure, a lid movable between opened and closed positions with respect to the access opening of said storage member, said bottom wall structure including a substantially rectangular frame seatable on the walls of said housing and means on the inside of said frame defining a cylindrical cavity, said cavity defining means having an opening therein which communicates with the inner end of said merchandise chute, said frame having means for releasably engaging the outer end of said cover when said frame is seated on the walls of said housing, whereby said cover is latched in the closed position thereof when said frame is seated on the walls of said housing, said bottom wall structure and the storage member carried thereby being shiftable to unlatch said cover to enable it to be pivoted to the opened position thereof, a merchandise wheel in said cavity and being rotatable therein to dispense merchandise from said storage member and through the opening in said cavity defining means and out of said vending machine by way of said chute, a money-operated actuating mechanism mounted on said cover and operatively connected to said merchandise wheel for rotation thereof when a money of predetermined denomination is deposited in said mechanism, a removable cash box in said housing for receiving money that passes through said money-operated actuating mechanism, and locking structure operatively associated with said lid and said housing and having a locked condition to prevent removal of said lid and to prevent said storage member from being shifted, said locking structure being unlockable to permit removal of said lid and to permit said storage member to be shifted to unlatch said cover.